The disappearing act
by Hitokiri of Mibu
Summary: For some strange reason Kenshin seems to be avoiding Hiko and the master is bothered by the absence of the tiny being that was his apprentice. Left with no choice he goes after his baka and read to find out the rest!


**A/N : standard disclaimers apply. **

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Something was wrong with his Baka Deshi, but how was he, Hiko Seijuro the thirteenth supposed to fathom how the minds of Baka Deshi's worked?

The said master of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu was sat on his favorite log, griping over how his morning had turned out so far.

In simple terms. It was bad. In more elaborate terms, he was currently suffering from a battle of various emotions. Yes, he had them.

Of course he had noticed for about a week now that something was off about the little redhead charge of his. But Kenshin was prone to various mood swings that ranged from sulking in a corner for no apparent reason to skipping around and humming even while doing chores.

So initially, Hiko had dismissed it as just another temporary occurrence. The first day, he barely paid it mind. The second day, he was slightly curious. The third day, it was beginning to unsettle him. Now, one week later, his nerves were frayed.

The problem was quite simple. Kenshin was avoiding him.

That itself wouldn't be so hard to figure out. Some training sessions were humiliating enough to make the youngster refuse to meet his gaze for as long as he could manage it.

But, he never could keep it up. Kenshin was after all one of those people with hearts. Hearts that loved immensely while desiring to be loved. The only good part about that was he was easy to satisfy, just being around him was enough to keep him content.

So when his constant presence disappeared and the boy took to staying in the cabin when Hiko was outside and vice versa, the master was rather confused. Kenshin just wasn't one to stay alone…

Neither was he one to hold a grudge. Sure he fumed and argued but in the end of the day he would be back with a small smile...So that meant, Hiko had either offended him greatly enough to keep him at bay for a week or something else was going on in his head that one who wasn't a Baka could not possibly hope to understand.

Only when he was bothered enough to pay close attention did Hiko notice that Kenshin wasn't avoiding him. Well he was, but he wasn't. When Hiko looked for him, the boy found a reason to be elsewhere. Chores, extra laps, extra Kata's anything. But when his master pretended to pay no mind to him, then he could spot the child gazing at him from afar.

Last night, Hiko had gone to sleep pondering the strange behaviour only to wake up to wide amethyst eyes staring at him. Honestly it had freaked him out to wake up and see the boy watching him sleep and he had slightly overreacted.

So now here he sat, trying to make himself feel better the one way he knew how. A jug of sake - never mind disks, if he had to deal with his baka, he needed the whole thing.

He took another swig before realising that it was empty. Ruefully he put it down and looked around. Kenshin was still nowhere to be seen and that only meant one thing. He had to go find the Baka Deshi.

But that was the easy part. Making him talk however...the master sighed again and glanced towards the empty jug, as if hoping that it was magically refilled. After procrastinating - not that that was what he was doing, of course not - as much as he could, he stood.

He cast out his Ki, searching for the familiar feel that was his apprentice. When he sensed nothing, he started to walk in a random direction. There were only so many places Kenshin could have gone off to and whichever way he went, he was bound to run into him.

Sure enough after about half an hour, he saw him sitting on a rock by the river staring - never did Hiko think he would use the word in reference to his baka - pensively. He didn't notice his master approach but gazed fixedly at the water.

"Baka!" Hiko called, startling Kenshin enough to make him fall right into the river.

Yes, this was the boy who was going to be the successor to the Hiten Mitsurugi ryu…

"Shi- shishou" Kenshin stammered as he pulled himself out of the water.

"What were you doing?" Hiko questioned, taking the seat that had just been so unceremoniously emptied.

"I was just - I umm - I've already finished the workout for today actually" Kenshin said quietly as he ducked his head, dripping red bangs covering his expression

"But i'll go get started on the dishes" he added quickly.

Not so fast, Hiko thought as the boy tried to make a hurried escape.

"Kenshin" He called out, slightly firmly.

"Hai Shishou" Kenshin answered despondently, knowing he wasn't going to get away this time.

"What is wrong?" Hiko asked bluntly.

Unbelievable how after thinking for hours, that was the best he could come up with. There was no way that would make Kenshin spill anything…

Sure enough, the boy only lowered his head further and shifted from foot to foot and Hiko was reduced to looking to the niche in the river that his baka had been staring at, for answers. All he could see was himself, not that that was a bad thing...now was just not the time.

"I will not have you so unfocused. Do you not take your training seriously?" The master questioned.

Of course there was no truth in the statement, Kenshin, no matter what mood he was in was always perfectly focused during practice. But the master had to start somewhere and wait blindly till he happened across the problem - which he surely would. Kenshin was such an innocent and transparent being….

"No - I mean yes - uh no. Shishou I take training very seriously" Kenshin finally settled on saying.

The baka…

"Running away is not a part of my teaching" Hiko said bluntly.

It was a slight exaggeration, but if this carried on, he was sure Kenshin would actually start running from him - the thought made him wince.

"I don't run away Shishou!" he cried indignantly, raising his head for a fraction of an inch.

"You disappear constantly Kenshin. How do you explain that then?" Hiko asked calmly.

"I don't" Kenshin lied feebly.

Hiko waited for the boy to say something more, add a statement of defense, make up an excuse, offer an explanation...anything...but he had fallen silent and his head was down again...

"You are avoiding me" Hiko said, cringing internally at how he sounded. Kenshin bowed his head further in response.

Ah, so he was at least admitting that that was what he was doing…

"Why?" Was the next question, falling sharper than he had intended.

This time he waited patiently, knowing that the silence would eventually become too much for the child and his natural instinct to obey would take over, making him answer. And just as he predicted, Kenshin first began to fidget and soon enough mumble incoherent words.

"You don't want to see me"

Hiko blinked. Was that what had just been said? Had he heard it right? No, maybe the baka was trying to say something else...that sentence, put that way simply did not make sense.

"I don't want to see you?" He questioned incredulously. A silent nod.

Now Hiko was truly lost. He knew he hadn't said that, he never would but had he said something else that made Kenshin think that? Why would he possibly think that? Kami-sama, one day his head was going to explode because of his deshi….

"Why don't I want to see you Kenshin?" He asked warily

This time Kenshin hesitated only for a second before the words came tumbling out of his lips.

"Because I look strange and ugly and no one wants to see me. But you have to see me during training Shishou, you don't have a choice. So I don't want to make you see me all the other times too"

It took all of Hiko's will power to sit still as stone. But honestly he wanted to laugh - laugh at just how ridiculous all of it was. He didn't know which was funnier, that Kenshin thought himself ugly or that he thought Hiko didn't want him around or that he exiled himself for such a thing…

All thoughts of laughing abandoned him the minute he caught sight of Kenshin's expression. The child's lower lip was trembling and those amethyst eyes were looking at him with such heartbreak.

"Why can't I look like you Shishou? Everyone likes to look at you" Kenshin asked pitiably.

While Hiko generally liked to have his ego stroked, he didn't appreciate it from a disheartened deshi…

"There is nothing wrong in looking like you, infact-" Hiko began only to have Kenshin cut across.

"But there is! I'm strange and ugly" He said.

The master stopped for a moment. That was the second time he was using those words, so that meant someone had said them. Someone who would have hell to pay when Hiko found them…

Or maybe it was some other child...no one in their right mind would call the boy anything like that, strange perhaps but...

For a second, the larger man looked down on the small boy, really just looking at him without thinking of him as his baka deshi.

The sun gleamed off the dripping wet red hair, flaming like fire and those eyes, those eyes that regardless of the light and unique color were always the picture of innocence. There was liquid grace even in his stillness and even if all of that didn't look stunning, there was always the shy smile he had..It wouldn't matter if he had a pigs snout and a bushy tail, the smile alone could break hearts….

"You are not ugly Kenshin" Hiko told him softly.

"I'm not?" Kenshin asked, seeming surprised.

"No, you are not" Hiko answered firmly.

Kenshin looked slightly doubtful, creasing his brows before hesitantly making his way closer to the river again to look at the reflection, trying to see if he looked the same…

"Then you don't mind seeing me shishou?" He asked in a small voice.

"No" he replied.

"All day?" Kenshin pressed.

"All day" Hiko agreed.

"And all night?" was the next question.

"Kenshin" came the threat.

The boy fell silent, but kept staring at the water.

"Even if i'm not ugly, I want to look like you" Kenshin decided finally.

"Everyone does baka" Hiko said coolly.

Kenshin turned to him with a dazzling smile, his mood already back to normal. The miracles of life.

"But no one can. No one can look like you. No one can be like you. You are the best Shishou!" Kenshin informed him happily.

Hiko only smirked. "I know"

"But i'll try! I'll try to be just like you" Kenshin said, his eyes filled with hero worship.

Hiko's smirk became more pronounced. Ah, yes, it was payback time for making him worry.

"There's a small problem in that baka" He said and watched as the smile faded.

"There is?" Kenshin questioned doubtfully.

"Yes, you look like a girl" Hiko told him matter-of-factly.

Kenshin blinked. Once, twice, thrice. then his face filled with horror.

"I don't Shishou!" He protested.

The conversation that followed lasted all the way till the night fell. However when they finally found themselves back in their futons and the child had fallen asleep, Hiko smiled secretly, satisfied to have had a tiny presence around him all day long.

All was right again.

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